Sky is the Limit if SOHO Shift Gears to the CLOUD

Being a small business owner can be a bit challenging; however, you can make your line of business easier by knowing what technology is available in the IT sector and how exactly its adoption can help you run your business more efficiently.

When we talk about new and emerging technologies - "Cloud Computing" is one such phrase that has consistently drawn the attention of many IT professionals and companies because of the umpteen perquisites it has to offer.

Cloud technology promises to deliver potential gains in terms of competence and cost-effectiveness by coalescing IT assets into public and private data centers. Furthermore, the increasing popularity of the cloud has certainly grabbed the attention of not only big conglomerates, but also small business owners.

Nowadays, even SOHO (Small office home office) and small business entrepreneurs have their heads in the cloud. They are trying their level best to adopt the latest in technology so as to emulate with the bigger companies for customers and market share.

All the provisions surrounding cloud creates a lot of opportunities for SOHO and small business entrepreneurs to jump a few levels up in terms of their IT capabilities and clout.

- By taking advantage of cloud-based solutions, a cost-cognizant SOHO user can circumvent infrastructure outlays associated with file and email servers, physical storage systems and packaged software. For instance, some of the small businesses do have the knack and expertise to carry out ongoing management of dedicated servers and storage so as to manage commercially available ERP or CRM packages. By leveraging the benefits of public cloud-based IaaS and SaaS solutions, these businesses can simply take up these offerings from the service providers rather than worrying about installation and maintenance of the infrastructure or advanced software packages. Furthermore, by making use of cloud, SOHO users can gain access to service levels (i.e. reliability and performance) that are much higher than they would be able to have through a typical on-premise installation. To summarize, it would be fair to say that leveraging cloud solutions in service-oriented manner will enable SOHO users to focus on the other significant aspects of their businesses.

- Secondly, it enables the end-user to access their business-critical applications that reside in a remote location and are accessible on a per-use or per-user or hourly or monthly or annual basis from the service providers. This can ultimately be a powerful competitive weapon that smaller players can use to seize numerous business opportunities that emerge in the market. Cloud-based solutions have flexible models and can be subscription-based, which enables the users to estimate and control their expenses by scaling up and down these services to meet unexpected rise in demands or growth spurts.

- Last but not the least, since the capabilities are available over the broad range of networks, SOHO users can access their mission-critical data through their smartphones, tablets, laptops, and personal computers anytime and from anywhere across the globe.

In few words:

Cloud computing is now a proven and optimal option for SOHO users and mid players. Shifting gears to the cloud will not only enhance your business agility and overall performance, but will also save your money. So, are you ready to make the switch?